'Big Brother' leaves, 'Survivor' arrives

The Watcher marks the changing of the seasons in the time-honored manner. Tonight, summer ends and fall begins as CBS crowns the winner of "Big Brother"and opens the 25th season of "Survivor."

I wish the network would air "Big Brother" first for tidiness's sake, but I guess a little seasonal overlap must be tolerated for the sake of ratings.

As returning played Dan Gheesling closes in on his second winning season, we must declare him the best player in the game's history, surpassing even Dr. Will Kirby. Of course, we are told to expect the unexpected on "BB," and there remains some chance that Ian Terry or Danielle Murphree could emerge as the winner. But win or lose, Dan was the season's best player.

Other than his great game play, it's been a bad season even by "Big Brother" standards. We'll hope for better as "Survivor: Philippines" kicks off. As "Big Brother" did, "Survivor" has former players leading its tribes. But Mike Skupin, Jonathan Penner and Russell Swan will be on the same footing as the other players; no lame twist will be need to convert them from mentors.

Here is the full cast list for "Survivor: Philippines," which also includes child actress-turned-Christian speaker Lisa Whelchel and former baseball great Jeff Kent.

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